Street railway or tramway



(No Model.)

J. PRICE. STREET R AY OR TRAMWAY.

No. 469,392. Patented Feb. 23, 1892.

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0 offflmw UNITED STATES PATENT 1 OFFICE.

JAMES M. PRICE, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

STREET RAILWAY OR TRAMWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 469,392, dated February 23, 1892. Application filed December 10,1890. Serial No- 374,156. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES M. PRICE, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia,State of Pennsyl- Vania, have invented a new and useful Iniprovement in Street Railways or Tramways, which improvement is fullyset forth in the following specification and accompanyingdrawings.

My invention relates to improvements in street railways or tramways; and it consists in the construction and arrangement of the parts hereinafter set forth.

Figure 1 represents a section of a streetrailway embodying my invention. Figs. 2 and 3 represent sectional views of modifications of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corre sponding parts in the several figures.

Referring to the drawings, A designates a street-rail, and B a chair of arched or angular shape, the latter being formed of either rolled, stamped, or cast metal and havingflaring sides 0, provided with horizontal feet D, ex

tending outward from said chair and adapted to be secured by the spikes E to a wooden or other cross-tie E.

The top of the chair is fitted closely in the under side of the rail, and both sides of the crown thereof are embraced by the depending flanges F of the rail and are provided with openings, through which and other openings in the said flanges F are passed the metallic binding-straps G, which pass underneath the under face of the crown of said chair and have their outer ends bent so as to be held in place.

In the modification shown in Fig. 2 a wooden sleeper H, resting upon the cross-ties E, is inserted within a chair J, which is of less thickness than that shown in Fig. 1, so as to strengthen the same and thereby aid in supporting the rail A thereon. The sides of the said chair are provided with openings for the insertion of spikes or rails K, preferably cylindrical in shape, for binding the said chair to the sleeper. Passing through openings in the flanges of the rail A are the spikes, nails, or straps L, which are driven in or rest in grooves on the upper face of the wooden sleeper and directly beneath the under face of the crown of the chair. The feet of the chair are secured bysuitable means to the cross-tie.

In Fig. 3 is shown a section of a channeled chair having the shoulders M on its sides, on which rest the flanges N of the rail, which are lengthened and are of greater thickness .than those shown in the other forms. The said chair is adapted to form a continuous passage or channel N. A soft metallic strap P, passing through the flanges of the rail and the sides of the arch above the shoulders and having-its outer ends hammered down outside the flanges binds the rail and chair together, and spikes secure the feet of the chair to the cross-tie.

In the structure shown and described the holes or openings in the flanges and chair are either oblong, oval, or rectangular and of a greater length than height to provide for expansion or contraction of the construction due to heat or cold. In connecting the rails and channel-chai rs broken join ts are used, so that the ends of the chairs and the rails do not coincide.

The chair constructions herein shown are first rolled in lengths of from twenty to forty feet of their respective sections and then sawed into widths of from three to fiveinches,

except the joint-chairs, which rest upon the two cross-ties and which should be from twelve to twenty-four inches long.

The strength of the arched longitudinal chair as first made is such that cross-ties may be entirely dispensed with and an excellent all-metallic structure had without sawing into chairs by resting this arched channel-rail system upon a tamped bed of Belgian block, broken stone, or its equivalent.

It will be seen that the various chairs herein described may be made of a channel-bar bent into the shape indicated by suitable rolls or other devices, punched 0r drilled to form holes, as stated, and sawed transversely, those for the joints being double or treble the length of the ordinary chair.

Both the arched-chair and the arched-channel constructions are possessed of great strength and elasticity, and the latter breaking joints with the rails frequently fastened to it makes a very firm and smooth surface, preventing shocks at the joints.

the rail diagonally into the sleeper, thus mak- -in g a Very solid structure of greatstrength.

The sleeper may be grooved to the width and thickness of the chairs, so that the top of the sleeper supports the bed of the rail by contact therewith, and spikes or nails maybe driven through the openings in the flanges of tially as described,.connecting said-chair and s1eepe1',-anda.cross-tie towhichsaid chair is secured, said parts being combined. substan- ...tially as. described.

spiked.th tough holes in the-sides ofztheohair,

-.while its. feet through similarholes arespiked 25.

toithe cross-tie,upon-which sit both chair and sleeper,. and a rail on said chain having depending. flanges with openingstherethrough 2. A metallic, chair With rectangular cen-j .tral spaceinclosing and fittinga Wooden longitudinalsleeper, to the sides ofhwhich itis.

to receive a. fastening with heads resting against-said flanges of the rail, substantially as described.

3. A metallic chair embracing and containin g a wooden longitudinal sleeper seated upon cross-ties, and the chair bound to the rail,

- seatedupo-n it by spikes driven through coincident holes in the depending flanges of the rail and the sides ofthe chair, the latter bound by spikes laterally to the wooden sleeper embraced and vertically to the cross-ties, substantially as described.

4. A street or tramway rail fastened laterally through .its depending flanges to a metallic chair upon which it sits, and to a contained wooden longitudinal sleeper by spikes through suitable holes in .both, said spikes havin g heads restin g against said rail-flan ges, in combination ,withthe cha1rs,. the, sleeper, and the cross-ties upon whichthesleepersits and to .Which the chairsarespiked, substantially asv described.

I JAMES M.: PRICE.

Witnesses:

JOHN A. W IEDERSHEIM, A. P. JENNINGS. 

